Michael Colreavy (Sligo-North Leitrim, Sinn Fein)
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Question 2: To ask the Minister for Agriculture; Food and the Marine the number of farmers that qualified for the agri-environment option scheme in 2011; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [23550/12]

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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The agri-environment option scheme - or AEOS, which we have just been talking about - is a targeted agri-environment scheme that is part-funded from modulation funds under the CAP health check. As currently framed, the scheme specifically targets three challenges that have been assigned the highest priority at European level. As I outlined in my reply to Question No. 1, these include halting the loss of biodiversity, contributing to the improvement of water quality and combating climate change. The format of the scheme was a menu-type approach, therefore, consisting of actions which can be demonstrably linked to those challenges, such as for example, traditional hay meadows in the case of biodiversity, riparian margins in the case of water quality, and minimum tillage practices in the case of climate change.

There are currently about 15,000 participants in AEOS I and II and I believe that the scheme builds on the important environmental work that commenced with REPS. A total of 6,894 applications were received under AEOS II, which I opened to new applications in 2011. Of this number, 6,615 applicants have been approved into the scheme while the remaining 279 applicants were rejected as not meeting the requirements of the terms and conditions of the scheme. All successful applicants have now been informed of their approval into the scheme and of associated queries that arose from their applications. Of the 2,400 applicants that had initial queries, over 1,840 have responded to query letters that were issued and replies are awaited on the remaining 560 cases.

Under the EU regulations governing the AEOS scheme and other area-based payment schemes, a comprehensive administrative check, including cross-checks with the land parcel identification system, must be completed on all applications before any payment can be made. The land parcel identification system has caused much frustration in my Department and for applicants because it has delayed the payment and processing of applications in many cases. These checks are well advanced and I expect that they will be completed shortly and that payments will commence in June. Payments in respect of 2012 will commence later on this year.

Jonathan O'Brien (Cork North Central, Sinn Fein)
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I wish to apologise for Deputy Colreavy who is unable to attend the House. I was given a crash course in agricultural policy at 9 o'clock this morning. The Minister has covered some of the issues in reply to the first question. One of the Deputy's roles as Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine is to ensure that as many people who want to farm land are able to do so. The agri-environment options scheme, AEOS, was an important aspect in that regard. It gave farmers additional income to enable them to have a livelihood from farming. It is unfortunate the scheme is not going ahead. The Minister said in his reply to the first question that he hopes to re-open it in September and that it will depend on discussions with the Minister for Finance. What discussions has he had with the Minister for Finance on this and how are they progressing? When does he envisage a decision will be made on it? If he is talking about re-opening the scheme in September for receipt of applications, when does he envisage he will announce a new scheme?

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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I thank the Deputy for those questions because they give me an opportunity to clarify a number of matters on which I believe there has been some confusion. It is true to say that no scheme has been opened yet but I have said consistently since budget day that I hope to open a much more limited scheme. It is important, even if it is only a skeleton scheme, that we keep environmental schemes intact and in place. Hopefully, we will have more money to spend in future years after a Common Agricultural Policy, CAP, negotiation and we can start expanding and building on those schemes again. The idea that we would not have any environmental scheme available to which farmers could apply would be a very negative move. Even though we have severe budgetary challenges to overcome in my Department, as has every other Minister, I want to try to put some limited scheme in place that would allow farmers to apply for an environmental scheme that, hopefully, we will be able to expand and develop in future years. That is why we will make a detailed submission to the Minister, Deputy Noonan, which may already have gone.

This is not about the Department of Finance, but about my Department. I will take responsibility for the AEOS. I do not want to pass this on to a decision from the Minister for Finance - that is not the issue but rather that any money we will spend on a new AEOS will have to be found in savings from somewhere else. That is my job, to try to put a budget together that can provide for a limited new AEOS III, but we must go through the procedure of getting approval to do that. I am committed to trying to do that. It will need to happen quite quickly because farmers would need to know whether they would be eligible, what they would need to do to apply and so on. We will need to do that early in the summer and I would hope to be able to give clarity on this probably in June.

Seán Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, Ceann Comhairle)
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We will move on to Question No. 3.

Jonathan O'Brien (Cork North Central, Sinn Fein)
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A Cheann Comhairle-----

Seán Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, Ceann Comhairle)
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We are over the time allocated for this question. I am obliged to play by the rules, otherwise we will not get to deal with ordinary questions.

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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We are trying to obey the Ceann Comhairle.

Seán Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, Ceann Comhairle)
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That is reason; I do not want to be cutting off Members.